


Red Candle

by coldcutcalamity



Category: LeviHan - Fandom, Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: F/M, Hurt/Comfort, Oneshot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-02-24
Updated: 2014-02-24
Packaged: 2018-01-13 16:10:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,416
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1232854
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/coldcutcalamity/pseuds/coldcutcalamity
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When a mission went wrong during an expedition, Hanji's squad had to pay the heavy price. Knowing the hurt all too well, it was up to Levi to be the source of strength and comfort that she had been to him in the past.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Red Candle

**Author's Note:**

> Hello. I couldn't sleep and I needed the distraction. Thanks for giving this a read.

Levi was sitting at the edge of his bed in a weary posture. Elbows rested on his knee as he hunched forward.

“Oi,” He looked to the woman lying on the bed. “Do you want me to blow out the candles?”

Her back was turned towards him, unresponsive. He could not see her expression and it bothered him. But she needed her space, and Levi respected that.

A few hours ago, they had just came back from an expedition beyond the wall. Needless to say, it had not been a successful one yet again. A couple of families would be in mourning tonight, and the feeling was unsettling. Being humanity’s strongest, it did not make him an exception. The countless death of his comrades over the years had not dulled his senses. He still experience the anguish that comes with every life lost. Despair was not something that one could ever get used to.  Everything that you thought you knew was not the same anymore.

This time, their journey beyond the wall had been exceptionally difficult on Hanji. Their mission this time had been plain enough: Hanji and her squad were to infiltrate, retrieve and evade. However, being in the Recon Corps, nothing was ever that simple. Unforeseen circumstances will always come into play and it was a risk that every soldier knew they had to take the moment they pledged their lives to regain back humanity’s freedom. But this time, disaster struck and Hanji’s squad had to pay the price.

Everything was going fine for the most part of the mission. They had managed to infiltrate the Titan’s territory without a hitch. Retrieving the important and classified documents from the old abandoned castle had been successful, but it went downhill from there.

A Deviant-type had come from the forest located near the area and it did not help that the deviant’s special ability was its incredible speed. Given that the old castle was mostly in shambles, there were simply not enough high walls for them to utilize their 3DMGs. Their best chance of survival was to remain on their horses and to disperse from the area as soon as possible. However, Moblit had been in charge of keeping the classified documents safe and at that moment, he was in danger of being devoured. Hanji had been busy keeping the other three 15m-class away from her comrades. She issued the command to the rest of her squad to save Moblit and retrieve the documents. Unfortunately, by the time she had got rid of all her prey, it had been too late. The bodies of her fallen squad lay on the ground in a bloody mess. She had looked up and saw Moblit being devoured, half of him chewed off by the deviant. The sight of her dead comrades had overwhelmed her senses and something in her just snapped.

Everything went by in a blur of red and the next thing she remembered, Levi’s squad had arrived to retrieve her. He had found her on the ground, unmoving, in the midst of several torn limbs. At first he panicked, thinking that the worst had happened. He ran over to her in blinding speed and heaved a sigh of relief to find her still in one piece and breathing. He noticed the classified document in her hand and slowly carried her in his arms before gently placing her onto the cart. She laid motionless throughout the whole journey back to the wall, her eyes closed.

 When they reached headquarters, Erwin had been the first to hurry over to them and demanded on the outcome of the situation. However, when he laid eyes on the rider-less horses and Hanji’s state, he held back his words before giving Levi a nod. Levi took this as an indication for him to take care of the distraught sole survivor. It was a tiresome task given his height, to carry the long-legged woman to his room at the third floor but not once did he fret.

Her silence throughout the whole ordeal unnerved him and it only made him tighten his grip on her. He did not know how to put it into words, but he hoped that his small gesture would relay to her his worry. And now, they were both in his room.

Seeing that she was not going to move or say anything anytime soon, he took off his uniform jacket, boots and straps. He needed a bath badly as the stench of blood was starting to fill his room. On a normal day, he would have nagged at her for messing up his clean sheets with dirt and blood.

But not today.

Today, he would give her space and he was going to give her all the time she needed. Grabbing his towel that was hung on the edge of his bed, he got up and went towards the communal shower that was down the hallway. When he came back, she had already fallen asleep. Her light snores filled the room and he closed the door slowly behind him, not wanting to rouse her. She had turned in her sleep and he could now look at her face. The tip of her nose was red, indicating that she had been crying while she was alone in the room.

A small part of him was saddened by this. Why would she hide her feelings from him? They had known each other for a very long time and what goes on in their minds were no longer a secret between them. But for her to push him away like this, it makes him feel that she does not trust him enough to let him see her in a vulnerable state. She needed to know that he was here for her. When he had lost his squad, she had visited him every night. Keeping him company till late with conversations about random things because she knew he had needed the distraction. He was grateful for what she did and now, he wanted to be there for her and do the same. But her closing up like this, was not helping the situation. He knew the feeling that she was going through now all too well and based on experience, it was better to let it out than keep it locked inside. Accepting the outcome was the first step in the healing process. Hanji has to put into words the turmoil that she was feeling. She needed to.

Looking at her sleeping form, he went closer to the bed and sat. The damp towel was still in his hands and he used it to wipe the traces of blood from her face. Once that was done, he took off her glasses and tried to ease the jacket from her arms. She stirred a little in her sleep but did not resist. When he managed to get the jacket off, he proceeded to take off the rest of her outer clothes. She was now only clad in her undergarments and he placed a blanket to cover her up so that she would not get a chill in the morning.

After blowing out the candle, he slowly slipped into bed next to her but maintained his distance. He was not particularly sleepy but he felt that it was only right for him to stay by her side, physically. Human warmth was the one thing that Scouting Legion soldiers never took for granted. The feel of another human’s presence and the ability to still experience the warmth radiating from another is the most significant comfort when getting back from an expedition. It was a powerful indication that they were alive and that the people that they cared about were alive too.

As heavier thoughts started to preoccupy his mind, he suddenly felt movement coming from the other side of the bed and soon, an arm draped over his side. Her right hand was moving blindly, as if searching for something. But the movement ceased when he placed his hand over hers and laced their fingers together. He felt her relaxed against his back, before curling itself to follow the length of his body.

With their combined warmth, he could feel his pulse relaxing together with the sound of her steady breathing. Soon, his eyelids grew heavy. The last thought that crossed his mind before falling into slumber was that if the outcome had been different that day, a lifetime of sleepless nights would have awaited him.


End file.
